cyano for over 6 months PLEASE HELP

Jackal799

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One thing worth a try would be to add a cheap UV to the display and see if it knocks back the Dino’s. Depending on the type it may be effective. However, it’s pretty evident the biome of the tank is jacked (likely from all the chemi clean). Without seeing it in person, I’d either add some live rock/sand from a reputable source or tear it down and start with live rock and sand. Probably not what you want to hear but you could spend the next 6 months fighting this thing and pulling your hair out when the path of least resistance may be a restart with live rock. I’m concerned about the amount of chemi clean used. The system can recover in time but it could take a long time. Sorry you’re going through it. Totally sucks
 

EricR

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It looks like Dino's to me and possibly some cyano. You need to use a microscope and identify what you are dealing with. Each type can be different to treat. Macks dinoflagellates group on Facebook is the best resource.
I agree that best bet would be microscope pics and video to know for sure what you're dealing with, if possible.
Even if dinos, best treatment is different depending on type of dino.

I've had dinos a couple of times but not too bad.
Currently in a multi-month, unexpected cyano outbreak in 3.5+ year old tank.
No idea why and have just been manually removing -- taking a long time but finally pretty much getting under control.
*my cyano pretty much just peels up in matts, like you'd expect
 

new beee

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Hi guys I have been battling cyano bacteria for the last 6 months. Ive tried chemic clean over 10 times, I've performed so many water changes. My phosphates are pretty high (0.3) I am working on bringing it down, but it seems no matter what I do I just cant win this fight.

Alk 7.5-8
Calcium 415
Magnesium 1400
Phosphate .3
Nitrate 20
ammonia 0
nitrite 0

Any advice will be greatly appreciated because this is a pain, I would also like to note anytime I perform water changes while destroying the cyano I end up getting dinos.
Do you have refugium?
 
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Rodan

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One thing worth a try would be to add a cheap UV to the display and see if it knocks back the Dino’s. Depending on the type it may be effective. However, it’s pretty evident the biome of the tank is jacked (likely from all the chemi clean). Without seeing it in person, I’d either add some live rock/sand from a reputable source or tear it down and start with live rock and sand. Probably not what you want to hear but you could spend the next 6 months fighting this thing and pulling your hair out when the path of least resistance may be a restart with live rock. I’m concerned about the amount of chemi clean used. The system can recover in time but it could take a long time. Sorry you’re going through it. Totall

Do you have refugium?
I do not
 

SonOfaGoat

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Definitely dinos. Make sure you add fresh carbon especially before you put in a uv. I did not and on the first night of uv my cleaner shrimp and lawnmower blenny died. Ostreopsis is more toxic but easier to treat with UV. I likely had Ostreopsis and amphidinium. I'm still treating for amphidinium, I vacuum them every other day into a 5mm micron sock and dump the clean water back in the tank. I originally lost most of my corals but they're starting to come back. Dosing silicate and bacteria as well.
 

CHSUB

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You posted a picture of absolute filth and wonder how to control algae. Regardless of the type of algae you have if you manually remove it, algae is not a problem. Spent a few hours with a toothbrush, scraper, and a turkey baster and remove all that crud with a WC. You might need a canister filter to remove stuff if a WC limits removal. Lower nutrients, manually remove crud and WC, no secrets to a healthy aquarium. Forget about all the inorganic nutrient advice, tanks can have levels all over the place, if the hobbyist interacts and cleans the crud.
 

Mr. Mojo Rising

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IMO LFS water is very questionable. You have to control the water quality, it starts with your own rodi system. Or buy distilled water and mix your own water. Don't leave this important step to strangers.
 

SonOfaGoat

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You posted a picture of absolute filth and wonder how to control algae. Regardless of the type of algae you have if you manually remove it, algae is not a problem. Spent a few hours with a toothbrush, scraper, and a turkey baster and remove all that crud with a WC. You might need a canister filter to remove stuff if a WC limits removal. Lower nutrients, manually remove crud and WC, no secrets to a healthy aquarium. Forget about all the inorganic nutrient advice, tanks can have levels all over the place, if the hobbyist interacts and cleans the crud.

I agree to a point. With dinos you can clean your tank, vacuum the sand, brush the rock do a water change and they will be back within 2 hours. They can cover your tank in a day. And with dinos lower nutrients are not ideal. They are a pain and treating them is generally the opposite of other algeas.
 

CHSUB

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I agree to a point. With dinos you can clean your tank, vacuum the sand, brush the rock do a water change and they will be back within 2 hours. They can cover your tank in a day. And with dinos lower nutrients are not ideal. They are a pain and treating them is generally the opposite of other algeas.
There are rules that apply to growth of all organisms on earth. They need nutrients to grow, dinoflagellates include. The only argument for raising nutrients to slow dinos is that something else grows in its place. Please show me examples of this something else. Imo this ‘cure’ of raising nutrients to fight dinos is a hobby observation and completely false. I have had algae take over one tank because I was lazy and the tank was dirty. A properly set up and maintained reef aquarium will never have an algae that the hobbyist can not control. Dead rock, live rock or no rock it’s up to the hobbyist not the algae. Manual removal, clean water, CUC is all that is needed.
 
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Rodan

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You posted a picture of absolute filth and wonder how to control algae. Regardless of the type of algae you have if you manually remove it, algae is not a problem. Spent a few hours with a toothbrush, scraper, and a turkey baster and remove all that crud with a WC. You might need a canister filter to remove stuff if a WC limits removal. Lower nutrients, manually remove crud and WC, no secrets to a healthy aquarium. Forget about all the inorganic nutrient advice, tanks can have levels all over the place, if the hobbyist interacts and cleans the crud.
I did a big water change destroyed as much algae as possible. The aquarium looks great but I know how this story goes . Tommorow I’m going to wake up with the aquarium looking like filth.
 

CHSUB

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I did a big water change destroyed as much algae as possible. The aquarium looks great but I know how this story goes . Tommorow I’m going to wake up with the aquarium looking like filth.
That algae you removed is sequential nutrients, when it grows back remove it again and that’s more nutrients you’re are removing. If that happens to be tomorrow that’s fine too. I stir my gravel, clean the glass and blow my rock 3-4 times a week. My tank is 10 months old and every week the corals grow and take more real estate, almost at the point where algae’s only place to grow will be on the glass or powerheads. Thats reef keeping.
20250105_132026.jpeg
 

Mels_Reef

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I did a big water change destroyed as much algae as possible. The aquarium looks great but I know how this story goes . Tommorow I’m going to wake up with the aquarium looking like filth.
Dino’s are difficult to combat and it takes time. They usually start when you put a new, clean surface in the system like a new frag rack, a new rock or rocks, etc. Once established, they out compete bacteria on those new surfaces and they will absolutely suck the nutrients out of your system and multiply like crazy!

The best way I have learned to defeat these things is to start in the morning and put filter socks in your sump. Grab a cheap powerhead and hold that powerhead to all the surfaces that have Dino bubbles on them to blow them off and into the water column. You might want to bump up the flow in the tank too just to keep the Dino’s from settling. You want the Dino’s to go into your overflow and into the filter socks. After you get everything cleaned off, give the tank about an hour to circulate those now suspended Dino’s into the filter socks. Then remove the filter socks and rinse with RODI and air dry. Unfortunately, you’ll then have to do the same process right before your lights go off. Yes, twice a day. I know it’s a lot of work but that is how I always defeat them. Once those new surfaces start getting coraline and bacteria building up on them, they will outcompete the dinos for space and they will slowly become less and less of a problem. A UV will help, but it will not defeat them. Good luck!
 

tripdad

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Here's what I did if you want to try it. Add a small amount of FRESH ocean sourced live rock. Marco's seed rock is good. Dose KZ Spongepower at 1 drop per 25 gallons. Dose KZ Zeoback at 1 drop per 40 gallons. Siphon sand and rocks as needed. No water changes. Feed as usual and add LIVE phyto daily. What happened to me was dino's turned to cyano. Cyano turned to diatoms and diatoms I can deal with. Good luck!
 

Huskereef

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look up Sunny X coral snow recipe. He has lots of information about it on here. Stop dosing chemiclean. It will take time to beat but stay the course. Your microbiome needs rebooted.
 

NeedAReef

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salinity? I had a blow out in my tank due to high salinity, snuck up on me. my tester was bad, borrowed 2 others and bingo 1.030... ouch lost a lot but it is coming back now.
 

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